Lost in Dream World
by MissCatty
Summary: Welcome to Dream World, a place where nothing's as it seems...or so he'd say if he could actually remember his dreams. But he's not the only one with this issue. And there's something he's forgetting. Something important...something dear...something...wait. Why is he crying? He just woke up. What did he dream again?
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I don't own the characters or anything from 七つの大罪。Bummer. **

**So...this prologue is the very first scene I had in mind to start this story. I wasn't sure about the storyline, and am still in the process of developing it, but I think I know what I want. ;D Mostly.**

**This is supposed to be written in present-tense, and I think I normally write in past-tense? Out of habit(?). Or maybe I think I might tend to mix them up...hm. I don't really know. But bear with me, I promise I'm trying.**

**Anyways. Hope you all enjoy! **

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**Prologue**

"Wake up…"

He feels his hair being brushed gently away out of his face with the most delicate of touches, almost as soft as a feather. Fingers lace through his hair and hold the sides of his head gently, yet firmly.

"You've already done enough…please…"

He could feel his body growing numb from the pain. There was something gradually soaking his clothes, making them mold to his body, following every muscle outline, sinking down into every crease. He was lying on the cold stone floor, but his head was placed comfortably atop something warm.

Ah, that's right. He knew what it was.

It was her…

"…wake up…wake up…wake up…"

She wouldn't stop whispering those words over and over again. These were words he now often heard her breath out in a hush, and he wasn't sure who she was saying those words for anymore. Was it for him? Because he was in seemingly incredibly bad shape? Heh. He only had a few scratches across his stomach, no big deal. Anything for her sake was no big deal. He just wanted to be in the same world as her…so why was she telling him to go? He didn't want to go. He didn't want to leave her alone. She's already been alone for so long...

He feels a warm drop of water splash onto his right cheek, and he opens his eyes to look up at her.

That was the other reason as to why he wasn't sure if her desperate pleads were for him or not: Were they for herself? So that she could escape this reality? So that she wouldn't have to keep crying like this? She was a big crier, and frankly, it was something he secretly adored her for. It was just a part of who she was and how she expressed her emotions so openly without a single care in the world who saw. Just as long as her feelings could scream to the world for what her voice couldn't. But she's been crying an awful lot lately—every time she sees him, she cries. He's told her so many times to not cry for him, that everything was all right. It'll be okay. Yet she still cries because she can't help it. But she does try for him. She really does.

"Heh," he lightly snickers, giving her his best lopsided grin because that's all his strength can manage for him to offer at the moment. "Don't cry," he tells her gently for probably the millionth time. But he doesn't mind. No matter how many times, until he's able to see her truly smile and be truly happy…he'll ask her to not cry for his sake. At least not like this, in this kind of situation.

After wiping her eyes dry, she simply peers down at him with her cerulean blue eyes, glistening like the waters of a crystal clear lake reflecting the voided sky. But the storm clouds quickly return to her eyes and flood the once calm waters of her eyes. Oops. It seems he may have made the situation worse somehow.

He tries to lift his left hand so that he can help clear her eyes, but despite all his efforts, his hand doesn't reach her face. He glances to the side to see what the problem is. _Oh. _That's right. He had his left arm ripped off. Guess it wasn't just a scratch to the torso he received, huh? And his right arm was no good. For some odd reason, it was just dead weight. What happened? Oh. Did that blow he tried to block shatter the bones in his right arm? Well, then. Hm. That's tremendously inconvenient…

A few more tears fall onto his face, and he brings his full attention back to her.

"Please…" she whispers, begging him, "wake up…" She then lowers her head so that their foreheads touch. "_Wake up…_" she whispers again, and this time, he can feel her breath like the warm spring breeze, tousling his golden hair.

He closes his eyes. He really doesn't want to leave her again….but he can't help her in this world when he's like this, can he? _Armless. Bleeding half to death. Immobilized. _Absolutely _useless. _Not what she really needs, nor has the time for. He purses his lips, trying his best to fight for another option other than this, but eventually sighs in defeat.

"Elizabeth," he softly calls out her name, almost feeling as if it was the very first time for him to say it. He purses his lips, discontent with that fact. This next time, for sure… "I promise you…no matter how many times I forget…I _will _remember you. Even if it's the last thing I do before death…_I will absolutely remember you_."

He can't see it, but a small smile manages to break her solemn expression.

"I know," she murmurs, fully believing every word he said. Her tears have now stopped and her eyes rest closed. "I know you will," she says with much more confidence laced in her voice, and lifting her head a little, she gently presses her lips to his forehead.

He grits his teeth, and with all his hidden built up frustrations and angers, as well as desires and a little bit of something else tearing its way out from his black heart like an enraged dragon trying to break free of its tightly held chains, his right fist clenches, the pain searing through his right arm feeling like absolutely nothing compared to what he truly felt welling up inside.

With her delicate hands still holding his head in place on her lap and her heart pounding loudly in her ears, leaving an echo after each beat, she ends the soft kiss full of everything she wish she could give and say to him, and slowly moves her lips down to his left ear, whispering one last time...

"No—Eliza—!" he tries to stop her—he's not ready—

But his strength has just about reached its limit, and the softly spoken words have already left her mouth, resounding in his ears like a distant memory coming back to haunt him.

"Wake up—"

He gasps wide awake, blinking.

"Meliodas," a deep voice calls from a distance in front of him.

He blinks again as his surrounding becomes clearer to him and he remembers where he is. His eyes focus on the brown-haired man in front of him, blocking everyone around him out of his mind, despite knowing that some eyes are lingering on him somehow in what feels like an intruding way.

"Was my lecture on how the ancient monks, during what many call the Apotropaic Millennium a thousand of years ago, sat in a circle of abandoned children's belongings, believed to be a vessel for demons, chanting their mantras as a way to ward off those demons that moving for you to be crying as you are?" the brown-haired man asks, his face serious as ever. That look was normal, though. He had one of those faces that typically always appeared and remained a certain way by fierce default, but due to the tone of his voice, anyone could tell he was simply astounded at what was happening in his classroom this very moment, which was why he brought attention to it.

But Meliodas didn't understand. He didn't get anything his professor was talking about.

"Demons?" Meliodas repeats dumbly. That was the first and one of two words that stuck out to him. The second was: "Crying…?"

He brings his right hand up to his face, and surely enough, it's wet.

_Tears?_

A mixture of emotions suddenly rush through him like a flash flood—_confusion, pain, anger, frustration, something like nostalgia, the desire to protect, the need to remember_—but as an outcome from the wreck, just as fast as these feelings came, they quickly left him, leaving him a hollow mess. The tears wouldn't stop...he just didn't understand. Why was he crying?

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**Thank you so so much for reading! :)**


	2. Normal

**1\. Normal**

"So," the spiky-haired boy begins, taking a sip from his sports drink, "I heard what happened in Dreyfus' class today."

Meliodas, poking at his grilled sandwich of some sort, looks up. "Oh? Something happened? What happened? Do tell!" he eagerly asks, leaning over the round, white table, propping his elbow up on top and resting his chin in the palm of his hand. He smiles easily as he waits for a response.

The spiky-haired boy across from him scrunches his eyebrows together, staring at the blonde with hard, scarlet eyes. "Oh, I think you know very well what I'm talking about," he says, setting his drink down.

Meliodas blinks innocently, locking his large, vibrant green eyes with the spiky-haired boy's scarlet red ones. After a few seconds of playing in the staring contest, he loses interest and leans back in his chair. "Nope, not a single clue," he nonchalantly states, going back to poking his poor sandwich. Could they even call this sandwich grilled? It was hardly toasted, let alone even burnt just a little bit. Just look at it! He could poke his finger straight throu—

The golden-haired boy constricts his face, his mouth opening with a silent "oh" as he slowly pulls his finger from the hole he had created. _Sorry, you pork-pulled grilled (which, I hate to break it to you, but you really aren't, actually) sandwich, _he apologizes silently. The least he can now do is give this hole-ridden sandwich the honors of him doing the exact opposite of what he had originally planned to do with it, which was not eat it. So he now picks it up and takes a large bite. As he does so, he finally notices the other guy sitting across from him, who is still staring. "Want a bite?" he asks with the sandwich still in his mouth.

The other boy sighs with exasperation, snatching the bitten sandwich from the blonde. "Are you seriously doing this to me, Captain?"

"What do you expect me to say, Ban?" Meliodas asks, stealing the sports drink from across the table.

A small smirk stretches partially across Ban's handsome face, and he promptly wolfs down the stolen sandwich with another three bites. Meliodas simply rebukes by finishing the stolen sports drink and slamming the empty canteen down as if he had just chugged a full glass of beer.

"I guess I should've expected that," Ban grumbles, but the brief disheartened look quickly fades from his face as the devil in him takes over. "But hey, at least you didn't cry. Here I was hoping to catch a glimpse of the Captain being a bit of a softie over his poor sandwich—which by the way, sucked—what even _was_ that?!" He shakes his head harshly and spits his tongue out as if that would shake the bad taste out of his mouth.

"Me? Cry? C'mon," Meliodas snickers, running a hand absentmindedly through his golden hair.

"C'mon, Captain. You can tell me about it. I know I heard right. You cried during Professor Dreyfus' class, didn'cha?" Ban eggs on.

"And what about it?" Meliodas says, his face now going blank.

"I've never taken you as one to cry—" Ban begins.

"Then why are you?" Meliodas interrupts, a certain solemn underlying his neutral tone. His green eyes stare into Ban's scarlet ones. Whatever lit up his eyes from within was now gone, almost as if a shadow had cloaked over them, taking away their shine.

Ban stares back, his smirk fading. He finally sighs and leans back in his chair as well. "You were dreaming, weren't you?" he says, more of a statement than anything else. "You fell asleep during class, and had a nice little dream." He pauses a minute and lets the silence have its moment of peace. Then he asks with all seriousness: "Any luck this time?"

Meliodas exhales deeply. "What do you think?" he rhetorically asks, almost as if that question is the very bane of his existence. Which for his case, it kind of was. "You know I don't dream. And even if I am dreaming, I don't remember them," he says, now leaning forward to rest his head atop his arm on the table. "I never can remember them," he mumbles, staring across the large foyer they are in, scanning the entire room in search of something. He isn't sure what, though.

The area is large and opened space. There are (surprisingly) comfy blue couches orderly placed in the heart of the area with coffee tables in the center of each set, while round tables (such as the one Meliodas and Ban currently sit at) with their own charging station line the outside borders, mixed with single sofa chairs huddled together throughout the place. Most seats are currently taken up, despite how many there are. It isn't that big of a surprise, however. The eccentric appeal about this place is that it always somehow keeps a serene atmosphere. It doesn't matter how many voices are chatting, laughing, shouting, or crying. It's always calm and relaxing here, almost as if it is a whole other realm, which is partly why most people referred to this place as the Kingdom. There are a few cafes in between the two entrances that lead to the West Hall and Northwest Hall, and they are open from breakfast to dinner hours, so you could basically come here and get food whenever. Some of the food is actually incredibly good, while others, like the (not) grilled sandwich Meliodas had…well…

Lastly, what is the main attraction for this place is that for the north and south walls, they are one large glass window, allowing natural lighting as the main light source; and then, for the main reason why this place earned its name as the Kingdom was because the entire ceiling is a work of stained glass art which seems to tell a magical tale of old where princesses, knights, and dragons roam, as well as many other mystical things; the very center of it all, in a round orb that acts as the sky in this fantasy world, with just a sun, a crescent moon, and some stars outlined by brass is the place Meliodas usually finds himself staring at the most, even though it seems to be the least interesting part of the artwork. It is less detailed, and the colors stay with just blue tones of cerulean as the actual sky and deep ocean blue as the planets and stars. But for whatever reason, he absolutely loves those colors. It's only here that he loves them. They always somehow calm his nerves whenever he looks at them.

As he stares at the glass sky, however, Meliodas can't help but feel as if something is off about it. Today, it seems a little more gloomy than usual. What he hears tapping lightly on the glass all around them in an unkempt rhythm soon reminds him of the reason. Ah. It's because it's not sunny for once. Normally, every day in the summer is actually nice and warm. Today, however…today it had started to rain once he had gotten out of his World Mythology class with Dreyfus. Everyone in the hallways was talking about it, and even though the fact has settled in, it's still a strange happening. Just like him waking up in tears from a dream he can't even recall is strange.

"Well," Ban sighs, catching Meliodas' gaze from the fake heavens, "you and I are still in the same club. I still can't even remember my dreams, if I even _am_ dreaming, like you say. I never was able to remember my dreams to begin with, like you. I'm not sure if this is a disabled condition in the brain or something, but all I can and will say is that this thing we have—" he exchanges a few points of his lightly tanned finger between himself and Meliodas—"is not normal."

"How did we figure out that we even had this same issue anyways?" Meliodas questions, not really looking for an answer. Whatever it is, it's long departed his memory.

Ban simply shrugs with an "I dunno" as he reaches over and grabs his water canteen. He grimaces in remembrance of what had happened to the rest of his sports drink before smirking at the blonde. "What I do know is that we need to get to practice soon. C'mon, Captain. We can talk more about this later. I have some new moves I wanna try on ya."

Meliodas nods his head in agreement as he stands at the same time as Ban. He then picks up his tray and places it on a nearby garbage disposal before coming back to gather his belongings and catch up to Ban who waits at the East Hall entrance. The tall, lean boy is checking his cell phone with furrowed eyebrows. Once he notices the blonde approaching, he puts his phone away and rests his elbow on his friend's head as they match each other's pace.

"So," Meliodas casually begins, a large grin plastered on his face, "how was my pulled-pork grilled sandwich?" At this, Ban's lips twist a bit. "Pretty disgusting, right?"

"I'm gonna crush you in today's practice," Ban simply says in a singsong voice, putting a bit more weight on his new armrest.

Scoffing, Meliodas rolls his eyes, but in the blink of an eye, he suddenly has grabbed Ban's hand, and with a quick twist, somehow now had him in a back arm lock, saying: "I've got a streak going right now, as if I'm going to let you break that…"

With a slight struggle, Ban breaks free, and when he turns around, Meliodas is gone. Whirling around, he doesn't find his sly friend standing in front of him either…but at the end of the hallway. _Running_. A large, wolfish grin curls the ends of his lips, and with a small snicker, he bursts off after the golden-haired boy.

.

They normally have wrestling practice six days a week for two hours. Sunday is always a rest day, and always the best day. That day, however, isn't going to be coming for the next two days. It's Friday, so that meant that everyone still had to come back to campus for practice tomorrow.

Meliodas sighs as he plops down on the mat, grinning widely as he turns to peer over at Ban who is groaning loudly. He offers the spiky-haired boy his water bottle, which he accepts, keeping one of his arms draped over his eyes. Both young men are sweating excessively, and both are absolutely exhausted. With the way their energy levels are, one might assume they had just barely finished a full marathon.

"How did you do that?" Ban groans, sitting up. "I _had _you—"

"Or so you thought," Meliodas cuts in easily, grinning widely.

Ban blinks at the bright boy. "I don't understand how you do that," he finally says. "You should've been locked in place."

"Well," Meliodas looks up in thought. The fans hanging from the ceiling are running, and while he can feel the slight cool breeze brushing against his wet skin, his body feels as if it's on fire. He's sure he can probably cook something on his skin due to its extreme temperature, or better yet, maybe grill that dumb sandwich better. And as gross as his sweat would have been, soaked into the bread, maybe the salt would balance the sickly, somehow overly blandly, sweet sandwich, which reminded him a little bit of this one cough medicine he took as a kid, an improved flavor. _Maybe_. "That's just a secret you'd have to kill me to share with you," he says as he smiles over at the grimacing boy beside him.

"Captain…" Ban begins hostilely, but Meliodas is already standing up, taking off his headgear and announcing to everyone else in the room, "Okay! Practice is finished! Good job! You all worked hard, and I expect all of you to work even harder tomorrow! Make sure to eat a good meal! Oh!—and don't forget to stretch! Don't leave until after you've done that!"

A chorus of exhales and groans sound off throughout the room, and Meliodas can only nod his head in approval. That, at least, is normal. Looking down at Ban while exercising his sore right shoulder a bit, he then says, "I agreed to cover a shift for Escanor tonight at the bar. I'm gonna head for the showers and stretch later, so take over for me if anyone has any questions, okay?"

"Hmm? Okay, Captain," Ban agrees lazily while nodding his head. "So you'll be coming back to the dorms later tonight?"

Meliodas nods his head with a small smile. "Yeah, I'll see you later!" he calls back as he heads towards the men's locker room. Once inside, his smile still present on his face, he heads over to the aisle with the bench his sports bag is on, placed next to Ban's, and sets his headgear inside. Quickly, he strips himself and grabs his towel, heading to the showers. Once at his usual shower spot, he starts the water, turning it to warm and stepping under the rough shots of water that pound down on him. School showers, or any kind of public shower for this matter, normally always suck. But it was sometimes nice when the showers are like this, shooting large, hard shots of water into him as if they are trying to stab him with the water. It almost is therapeutic.

He sighs in relaxation at the feel of his skin being washed clean from the sweat and runs his hands up his face and through his hair. He then drops his head down, allowing his bangs to get dragged down by the water to follow the small currents that ran down his face. His small smile is beginning to diminish.

Why _couldn't _he just remember his stupid dreams? He knows he's dreaming when he sleeps. He _knows_ it. He knows it because there is always—_always_—a lingering feeling he wakes up with. A feeling that doesn't quite feel like his own, but he knows it is. It just feels…off. These feelings—_emotions_—it's never a lingering feeling he had felt the night before or feels in anticipation for the next day. Normally, it's a pretty faint feeling, so he doesn't ever really focus on it or acknowledge it. In truth, he simply just forgets about it, despite feeling as if he shouldn't do that. He used to feel guilty about ignoring it, but he eventually became numb to the feeling. Wrestling ultimately helped him achieve that. Brawling with Ban and other rivals help him forget all of his worries and problems.

So, why is it that when Ban tried those new techniques on him, his fear of losing was eaten up so fast by a certain desire to protect? And it wasn't his desire to protect his winning streak. While he honestly really hates to lose, there are times when even he can allow it. He became captain of his university's wrestling team for many reasons, and while his refined skill and confidence was the main reason, his ability to have humility was another one of them as well. Yet today, he had actually been stricken with genuine fear when he realized he might not win the fight, which isn't a normal reaction for him since he normally is able to accept losing a fair fight with grace; but as an immediate instinct, his body acted, doing something that felt so familiar to his limbs that he himself wasn't even aware of as a counter move and the next thing he knew, he had won the match.

If he had been completely honest from the start, maybe what is happening to him now might not come as this big of a shock to him. He tried to ignore it. He really did. But they just wouldn't go away. _These feelings_…the ones he felt when he woke up in class earlier today. He really tried to not let it bother him. He was managing fine for a little bit, too. But even _he _knew something was different today. He had felt the emotions from his unmemorable dream exceedingly strong today—even now, he still feels them heavily, weighing down on his heart. In a way, it almost makes it hard for him to breathe…

Meliodas takes in a deep breath, slowly turning up the temperature to the running water until it is hot. It feels _so nice_ on his stressed out body. As the steam begins to fill the room, though, it makes it even more difficult for him to breathe. He stubbornly deals with the strain on his lungs, and bangs his head forward against the shower wall, letting it rest there as he rubs his calloused hands over his face, allowing them to remain there to act as a mask.

It isn't long before he finds himself in his usual place for his part-time job, going through with his usual movements in order to concoct a creation with the liquor. He smiles at the customers genuinely, but something is slightly off. It isn't something they can notice with their hazy eyes, though.

The shift is from 6:00 P.M. to 12:00 A.M. Normally, he enjoys the work—even when it is a shift he's covering. He genuinely enjoys being a bartender and listening to everyone's problems. He always has some of the most fun ever at this job. But he feels absolutely exhausted an hour into the shift, and by the time he's off the clock, all he wants to do is go to his bed and stay under the covers for the next few decades.

By the time he returns to his dark dorm, heading straight to his shared bedroom with Ban, whom he already knows is still out, he doesn't even bother changing his clothes, merely collapsing onto his bed and dozing right off…

When he opens his vibrant green eyes, he finds himself lying in a grassy field this time. Staring up at the peaceful blue sky, where fluffy white clouds float along with the quiet breeze like swans on a lake, his jaw locks. He can hear the slight rustle of the long grass strands swaying in the gentle breeze. Oh how peaceful it is here. Almost mocking him just a bit, isn't it? His hands clench into fists. He cusses loudly and bangs his right hand down into the ground, shaking the world. Inhaling deeply, he then does a kick up, landing easily on his feet. "Now then," he says, and evaluating his surroundings, he heads off in a certain direction, leaving only a tiny portion of his evolving anger left behind in a fairly large crater of crippled grass that most would consider impressive and fear him for managing to create, especially now, considering how his magic is still gone.

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**Thanks so much for reading! :) And special thanks to those who favorited and reviewed.**


	3. Alone

**2\. Alone**

_Crack! _

She clasps both her hands over her open mouth, cutting off the frightened gasp that nearly escapes her lips. Her whole entire body is trembling, and her burning legs feel like jello. How long had she been running for? She leans her back against the large, rough tree trunk, unable to find any more strength left in her legs to adjust them in order to help relieve the burden of discomfort that's currently spreading through them. As her back sinks into the coarse texture of the tree, she can't help but feel a sense of ease overcome her. Who knew something so jagged could bring this much comfort…

_Snap!_

She jumps, and her heart nearly manages to hop right out of her chest so that it can run far away from her body out of fear for what might find it. A waterfall of tears are still streaming out of her eyes. She's scared. _Terrified. _She doesn't know how much more her body can take. A small seed of hope that he'll come is planted in her heart, but she's very much alone, and she knows she can't rely on him, or any of them, to come save her every single time, even though one of them always—_always—_somehow manages to rescue her in some way when she's in absolute _dire _need of it…but did her situation suffice to become that kind of eventuality? She closes her eyes, shielding them from this horrible world and even more so horrendous desire that is clawing its way out from the dark corners of her heart.

To say she allowed this to happen is wrong. However…to say she is starting to hope that her condition would reach that _dire _situation isn't completely wrong, either.

If she ever had to go through a confession session, then this would be her sin to plead guilty for: She once upon a time didn't do everything in her power to stay away from danger. Not that she was putting herself at risk on purpose. She never wanted any of it to happen. At least, that's what she initially always thought. The truth is, while she never outwardly invited it to happen, she always made room for the possibility of it. That was always enough for something to occur. And yes, she knew how stupid it was. Especially now, she knows it as clear as the tears she's been crying every day—they never stop, in case anyone is curious. Anyone at all… _Who can care? _She is alone.

She takes in deep breaths to soothe the overwhelming swelling that is developing inside of her like an injury beginning to inflame rapidly. There's no time for her to throw a pity party for herself—_why is she even acting like this? _She used to be better than this.

Opening her eyes, she stares with dull cerulean orbs through the darkness surrounding her while her hands lower from her mouth to rest at her sides. The smell of wet leaves and something slightly bitter invades her body. She is currently taking cover behind some small shrubberies which are barely big enough to hide her slumped figure that appears like a limp, broken doll, and the pieces she can see through the dark green leaves are only bits of the chilled, murky forest she had woken up in this morning—or whatever time of day it was—she rarely ever knows anymore... It's now eerily silent.

So, she closes her drying eyes once more, allowing her other senses to take over. _Your other senses are some really useful tools you stupid humans never give much attention or appreciation to!_ she can hear her rather large and round pink friend 's voice echo inside her head. _For example, my nose. Maybe if you practiced and actually _used_ your nose, you could be as helpful as me and do this sort of thing by yourself. But I guess it can't be helped. _

She can't help but allow a small grin to crack the grave expression on her face in remembrance of the memory. Her pink friend was upset because the particular stench he was tracking back then absolutely_ reeked!—_but they needed to track the owner of the scent since they had apparently stolen something valuable from inside the Boar Hat, the bar a particular golden-haired boy ran. This boy… Her small grin fades. _Where are you now? _she wonders as the rest of the memory from that particular day flash floods into her mind, filling the entire room of her thoughts. The item that was stolen, it was something important, but he never did tell her what it was, did he? He didn't even let her or some of their other comrades come along. He only allowed their mage friend, Merlin, to come. She was so concerned when they didn't return late that night, too; but they did eventually come home the next morning—him having the largest smile on his face in greeting despite having a few mysterious cuts that etched his body.

When will be the next time she'll ever get to see that smile again in that kind of setting? She wishes she had known back then that that scene wouldn't last forever. But she should have known better than anyone else how important it is to treasure each happy moment, for one never knows when it'll be violently taken away from you...

She really misses him, Meliodas. And her pink, talking pig friend, Hawk, too. And of course, everybody else…

Her chest starts to constrict again and it becomes hard for her to breathe as she tries to contain her tears. _No pity party. Don't cry, _she tells herself. She can try to be strong, at least, even though she sometimes could be the absolute worst. Once, in a dark time period of weakness, she let everyone else get hurt, and she herself almost lost it all—every person that mattered to her, every memory she held close to her heart…even her own _life_.

She never lets herself forget. Even if she tried, she could never. _Gosh_, she really can be such an idiot. She hates how weak she can be.

A while ago, back when she first was trying to cope with it all, when she still didn't _fully _understand the heavy burden she had chosen to take up on her frail shoulders, how everybody's future depends on her, how every real memory they all no longer remembered rests in the palms of her delicate, weak hands…she had become overly aware of how lonely she was, and would continue to be. And the fear…oh that _stupid_ fear_. _

Here in this world she now solely exists in, unable to exist anywhere else, is the most dangerous place for anyone to be in. At least, that's what she's beginning to understand. Especially for herself. She is a girl with no real special power, physical strength, or fighting skills. In this place, it is almost mandatory to have one, if not all, of those. Either that, or start greeting death like an old friend each time you visit here, unless you are able to escape it before you leave this world. However, for her case, she can never escape this world. Not until her real home world is restored.

The whole reason why she was even sent here is because she could no longer exist in that world they all once lived in. She can't help but wonder what it's like now—a world where magic never existed… How is everybody doing? What kind of life are they living? Are they all still friends? How much has exactly changed? Are they doing okay?

Better yet…is her sacrifice worth anything? Or is it all for naught?

Like the amount of time she's been trapped here and how she cannot figure out the timeclock here to save the life of her, she no longer knows how long it's been since the threat to all of magic's existence was endangered to decease. Magic was going to be completely gone forever, and she was not going to let that happen—not when it was such a huge part of everyone and mattered so much to them—so, the second she saw there was a way _she _could actually help all the people she deeply treasured, she sacrificed herself without thinking, triggering the curse that everyone is now ensnared in. Now, she is trapped here while everybody else has to live in a world where no magic ever existed. In order to break the curse set by holy and demon magic, all that has to be done is for someone to remember her name. Someone has to remember who she is and that she ever existed. It seems simple.

But apparently remembering someone you never knew existed is hard to do. Maybe impossible.

The corners of her lips twitch downwards a bit.

As the curse entitles: in a world where magic never existed nor can no longer exist in, someone has to remember her, the person who sealed the entire world's magic inside her body as a vessel to contain it, in order to bring everything back to the way it once was; and in the new cursed world where magic never existed nor ever can, she can't exist there.

Between the Demon Realm, Britannia, and the heavens, a place not affected by the curse exists because it's a place not of this world. This is the only place she can exist in, named: Somnia. In a way, this world isn't even real while at the same time it is. Somnia is a world of dreams, originating from the Demon Realm, and the only way to reach this place is through dreams. That's what Meliodas told her, at least, and it seemed like there was more he could've said, but wouldn't. She trusted that was all she needed to know, though; yet it didn't stop the questions from forming in her mind. She did press for more before, but he never said anything that was enough to put out her now flaming curiosity. If only she had some mind reading powers...

That's what made her situation funny, however, because even though she has all the magic in the world stored in her body, she can't use an ounce of it. Why? Because none of it is her own. She's just a sealed vessel with magic seals keeping everything contained inside of her. If she dies, so does the magic. Her body is just like an alternative to some ancient pot—both are very fragile, both need to be treated with great care, and if they break, then there's no repairing the damage because even if someone does manage to glue the broken pieces back together, they're still nothing but broken and useless, no longer holding or able to hold what was once kept inside of them. Which is why protecting her and keeping her alive is their first priority.

Unlike Meliodas and the others, if she gets hurt here, she gets hurt. Everything that happens to her is real because her body here is her actual physical body. When the others come here, it's not their real body; it's just their body in a dream, so when they die or get seriously injured, they wake up and disappear from this world, leaving her. When they return, their bodies are renewed, and thankfully, their memories aren't, at least.

It was a huge shock, though, the first time she witnessed it. The first "_death_." She wasn't expecting it at all. The worst part was that it had been him, too. It had been Meliodas. And unbeknownst to her at the time, it wasn't going to be the last time it happened, nor was it going to be happening a merciful amount of times, either, even though he warned her. That's when she began to discover how her body probably _could_ produce an ocean out of tears. She also began to realize that she would be spending a lot of time by herself. As an after effect, she then had to be so incredibly stupid and selfish by (inactively) trying to put herself in danger just so she could find someone, or more accurately, they'd be able to find her. She maybe wouldn't have to spend some time alone in this forsaken world full of creatures with nothing but bloodlust in their piercing eyes, is what she originally thought, only to nearly get herself killed in the end. In her defense, she didn't understand what exactly was going on when this first all started and she thought—

_You're just making excuses, _a voice suddenly says in the back of her mind. _That's just an excuse. Excuses, excuses, excuses…_

She clenches her teeth, but she doesn't bother quieting the voice. It is just her own conscious speaking nothing but the truth. She knew where the stakes were and how high they were when she decided to sacrifice herself, but the reality of it didn't slap her until she took action and had to start living it. When she first arrived here, all she knew was that she had been taken to a place called, Somnia, and that nothing could go back to normal unless someone remembered her name. But how was anyone supposed to do that when their memories of her would be erased? She believed in the people she knew, though, and that was enough. She still wholly believes in them. After all, he gave his word to her. They all did. But her will had started to falter at some point…and then she received her punishment.

"What were you thinking, Elizabeth?" Meliodas had asked her quietly. He was treating a large gash on her fair leg that she had received from the hideous, black beast that had started chasing her earlier. "I know you're strong in many ways, but not like this. You can't fight that kind of monster, let alone outrun it."

"I know," she quietly whispered, trying her best to not flinch as he wrapped her wound. She refused to look him in the eyes. If anything, at least let her keep some of her dignity, even if it was the size of a sand grain, so that she could face him properly the next time she would see him. In the background, she could hear Hawk asking repeatedly in a mixed, panic mess of "Yeah, what were you thinking, Elizabeth?" and "Are you okay? Is she okay, Meliodas?" and "Eek! That was scary…did you see its teeth?!"

She honestly didn't know what to do in that moment. She didn't know what to say because she knew that he saw. Hawk, too. They both saw. They saw how she just stopped and stood there, unmoving. How the black side of her heart was beckoning for that creature she had originally been trying to run away from to look her way. How she stared directly at it, politely waiting, until it did notice her.

Originally, she had thought she had given herself enough space from the beast. She thought that if this didn't work out in the end, she still had given herself enough room to barely manage to make it out of this alive all by herself. Again. She originally could have gotten away from the beast without any trouble or injuries scathed, but when she realized she was going to be safe and make it far away from the beast, she stopped. If she was safe and sound, hiding somewhere where no creature or soul could ever find her, then it would probably remain that way for the rest of the day until sleep took her far away. She would have to end the day being in her own company. Again.

She pursed her lips. It was...unacceptable. She wanted—no, _needed_—them to find her.

She could admit, talking to herself could sometimes bring some entertainment for maybe five seconds, but it could never suffice. It could never compare to the feeling of being held by someone dear and being able to smile and see one in return that wasn't your own reflection. She couldn't afford to be safe quite yet because that meant the chances of anyone ever finding her would dwindle down to nothing, and all she wanted was to see _someone _she recognized, so that she knew she still wasn't entirely by herself. That they were still out there. So, she stopped running.

But she somehow didn't realize earlier that the creature was destruction itself and could tear everything down in its path so quickly and catch up to her so easily, swallowing her whole. This was the one time everyone from Meliodas' group of comrades and some Holy Knights close to the royal family found her and came to her rescue. This was the only time, too, where seemingly everybody was able to find each other in this vast world, and maybe if she hadn't have put herself in danger like an idiot, they all could have had a better, more tranquil reunion. No one would've gotten hurt. No one would've died. It was all her fault...

"Yeah," Meliodas then finally said, placing a warm hand gently under her chin and lifting it so their eyes inevitably met, "but do you really?"

She simply stared.

_One second... _

_Two seconds... _

_A few more seconds..._

That's when she broke down and confessed everything. She was lonely. She hated being alone. She just wanted to be with everyone else. She just wanted to be with _him. _This world was terrifying, and nothing ever stayed the same. She was always, always alone. No one ever found her unless she was in danger, and she wanted them to be able to find her, so she did what she could so that they would find her. She just missed everyone so much. But she knew she was being selfish. She hated how everyone always had to get hurt in her stead, and how there was absolutely nothing she could do to help. She never meant for anyone to have to get hurt. She never meant for any of this!

Meliodas listened quietly to her, never once showing a hint of hate or disappointment. When she finished her confession, he remained silent. The silence had felt like thick honey was being poured over them, filling the empty void surely, yet torturously slow.

Then, after what felt like an eternity, Meliodas finally spoke: "Elizabeth, I made a promise to you, and so did everybody else. I'm sorry I haven't been able to find you every time I come here, and I can't guarantee that I will be able to find you, either. Not in this world. I need you to understand that and stay strong because while my resolve and promise to you will remain true—I _promise _I will remember you—it won't be worth anything by itself if you aren't still alive. Don't let what everybody else is sacrificing for you all be for nothing. Don't let your _own _sacrifice be for nothing. We're all trying to protect the same thing, and it is going to take some blood.

"I'm not asking you to get used to it. However, no matter how brutal it gets, no matter how hard it is, don't forget why you're here in the first place. You can't let this be the reason that ultimately takes you down. Just the fact that you're still here after all this time is proof of your will and strength. Don't give it up just yet. You've survived a lot longer than most who have come here. But even so, if you can't fulfill the desire you sacrificed your own life for, I promise to carry it out for you, even without magic.

"And I have one last promise to you for once we break this curse, which is that I will never let you be alone like this ever again. But for now, you're going to have to be strong. You need to remember that this is what you chose because you wanted to protect everything. There is nobody else who can have your resolve, and if you give up now, then it's over."

Once he finished speaking, Meliodas proceeded to wipe her tears while Hawk buried his head beneath her trembling hand, snuggling close to her.

As his words fill her mind once again, the dark feeling in her heart vanishes.

Elizabeth understands it all now. She knows where her heart lies and what kind of resolve she needs in order to fulfill that hope she originally had—she _still _has. And _nobody_, and absolutely _nothing_, is going to stop her. Even if they never do remember her name or who she is…

_Crack!_

Elizabeth jumps and flashes her eyes open. Some strength had returned to her legs during her moment indulged in her thoughts and memories, so she quietly pulls them close to her chest as she scans the several openings through the leaves she can see of the dark, colorless forest. Her heart is pounding like a drum beating the death toll and her vision is still adjusting. If she heard right, then the sound came more from her right…_ah! _She spots it. The _thing._ Or at least, a leg of it…? It blends in fairly well with some of the slimmer, gray tree trunks, but she's sure that's one of its legs.

From what she recalls seeing, this creature is large and lanky. It reminded her of a large spider when she first spotted it in the distance through the cool fog after waking up and walking around for what felt like at least an hour. At first, she wasn't sure what she was looking at. She had stood still for what felt like one whole minute, trying to make sense of the thing she was looking at and why all her senses were warning her to stop and run far away from it. Her heart nearly stopped once she realized that there was actually a _thing _standing there, and she had a feeling it was staring at her, too. Before she knew it, her body was already going into flight mode and all she could think was: _Isn't this just a lovely way to already start my day off as?_

Elizabeth holds her breath as she stares at the leg. She tries to think of what to do when suddenly—

_Snapcrack!Crack—whoosh!_

She snaps her gaze forward to look straight ahead, and all Elizabeth can see are the traces of the proof the direction the spider-like creature had rushed off to through the falling leaves. Apparently she didn't have to bother making an escape plan at all. Before she even bothers to question why, she crawls out of her hiding spot and begins running off in the opposite direction, but a little bit at an angle so she isn't heading back in the same direction she had come from. She doesn't bother looking back and keeps running through the fog, breaking the branches of the shrubs she keeps blindly running into. The fog, like a white smoke screen heavily blanketing the ground of the forest, hides what lies up ahead and what's being left behind her.

All Elizabeth can hear are the echoing sounds of _snap! _and _crack! _as she runs through the dull greenery and breaks their arms that block her path and tug on her night sky blue dress with an infants grip. Her cheeks feel hot, and her lungs are starting to hurt while her legs are feeling oddly light, but she doesn't slow down. Off in the distance, she starts hearing the familiar sound of thrashing water and can smell something wet and dewy, and as the noise is getting audibly closer, she hears a loud _screech! _intertwined with something else far off in the distance, so she turns her head inherently, conscious of how her silver starlight hair falls all over her shoulders, brushing against her tender skin through the ripped openings on the upper left shoulder of her dress, to look behind her with her arms shielding her face from the skinny branches that seem to be getting more obnoxiously plentiful—

"_Ah!" _a scream suddenly escapes her lips.

For, there no longer is any ground beneath her.

* * *

**Just so you know, I worked my butt off on this chapter. So it better not be _too_ awful. ;P **

**Thanks so much for reading! :)**


	4. Natural Man

**3\. Natural Man**

Meliodas rubs his eyes thoroughly as if it would help wear away the drowsiness he feels heavily in them. It's quiet at the moment, all except for the gothic piano music playing on the speakers in the room, lulling his tired mind to a sleep he can't have yet. It's a sporadic cycle he goes through, but every now and then, he'll have nights where he keeps waking up in the middle of the night repeatedly. It doesn't ever matter how exhausted he is. He'll still wake up. He's not very sure how normal it is, but he hasn't bothered to visit a doctor about it, and he probably never will. It doesn't seem like that big of a deal. Anyways, he's a college student, so having weird sleep patterns should be normal, right?

"You kept rubbing your eyes like that during practice today, too," a familiar voice says from his right.

The golden-haired boy drops his hands and looks over, grinning. "Yo, Ban," he greets. "Aren't you supposed to be back in the kitchen?"

"There haven't been any orders coming in for the past half hour, and I was getting bored," Ban says with a shrug. He leans his tall form over the polished black marble countertop and rests his elbows on top lazily, glancing at the two customers who currently sit at the bar. Sitting in the corner at the other end of the bar is a young man—more like little boy, however, due to his seemingly small stature and childlike face; and a few seats down is a bony older man in a gray suit who probably has just been released from a long day at work. "It looks like you're not so busy either, Captain," he remarks.

"Hmm?" Meliodas ponders with his hands on his hips, looking at the many empty seats. "I guess not," he agrees. "It's pretty dead right now. Huh..."

"So, did you not get much sleep last night?" Ban asks, jumping straight to the question on his mind, with scarlet eyes trained on his friend carefully.

Meliodas' face is blank. Then he looks over at his friend, about ready to say something when the single door at the front of the mini bar-restaurant opens suddenly, sounding off a small _jingle,_ and an Amazonian girl walks in. This girl has chestnut brown hair hanging loosely just barely past her shoulders, and she's dressed in an athletic outfit of black sneakers, black shorts, and a loose cyan T-shirt with the image of a crimson shield outlined in white with a cyan winged horse in the center. The image of the shield and winged horse is a familiar image to both Meliodas and Ban, for it is their university's acclaimed emblem. But neither of them knows nor recognizes who the girl is.

The chestnut-haired girl trudges straight over to the center of the bar, dropping her black sports bag from off her shoulder at the foot of a designated black stool and heaves out a sigh as she sits down. Her cheeks are dusted cherry red and her eyes are cast downward. She looks absolutely exhausted. When she looks up with her majestic purple irises, she nods at Meliodas, saying: "Hit me up with whatever you've got. Anything will do." She then releases another heavy sigh with the words of "Gosh, I'm so tired" escaping her lips in a small whisper as she places her elbows on the black countertop and holds her head facedown.

With a side-glance at Ban, Meliodas says, "One second," and he immediately sets off to work. He wipes his hands on his black apron first before grabbing a large, clear glass and setting it atop the countertop, and then he grabs a few other glass bottles, as well as a cocktail shaker. He then pours a little bit of dark liquid out of each bottle in the silver canteen, and then proceeds to place the cap on the canteen and starts shaking it quickly before eventually pouring its foamy contents into the glass. The intense smell wafting from the alcoholic beverage, which is bubbling like a witch's cauldron, is a mixture of something bitter and sweet, almost as if the two are in a fight to overthrow the other and be the winning scent. He then slides the glass over to her, watching it keenly as he slowly starts putting everything away with attentive green eyes as it glides across the smooth black surface like an ice skater on ice. The full glass then slows, stopping perfectly in front of the girl. He does a silent fist pump in victory as he turns and walks over to Ban.

Mildly impressed, Ban nods his head slowly, offering silent slow claps in ovation. "Mind concocting something up for me?" he then asks, to which Meliodas just leans down and pulls out a bottle of beer, easily popping the lid off and giving it to him. "Heh," he snickers. "I see where your priorities lie now, Captain."

Meliodas simply fixes his black bowtie and adjusts his bartender uniform, ignoring the comment as he rests his right elbow on the countertop to prop his head up. He looks over at the girl, watching as she studies the drink in front of her, almost as if she is debating if it has poison in it, before she shrugs and takes a sip. Her eyebrows furrow a little and she looks down in confusion at the drink, but she continues to take more sips and her facial expression soon relaxes. She's fallen under the drink's spell.

"What do ya think?" Meliodas asks with a large friendly smile on his face, feeling a bit victorious. This drink he made for her is a special one, and so far, as he's just barely witnessed once again, it's never proved to fail when calming the body and spirit of someone.

The girl flicks her eyes over, slightly alarmed, and puts the drink down, quickly swallowing the gigantic gulp she had taken. "It's…different," she says slowly, "but I like it." She then allows a smile to take over the features of her tired face, drawing out a certain cuteness about her to attention.

"It's a special drink not on the menu since I made it up myself for special occasions, but I call it: Demon's Wrath," Meliodas says cheerfully.

"'Special occasions?'" the girl echoes.

"Yep," Meliodas confirms.

The girl shakes her head. "I don't get it," she says. "Is this a special occasion?"

Meliodas' grin softens a little, and he simply shrugs. "I dunno, is it?"

The girl gives him a slightly exasperated look.

"You just seemed like you needed it," Meliodas finally says with a light laugh. "That's all. It seems like you've had a long hard day. Anyways, it's on the house. Don't worry about paying."

The girl's changing expression melts from stunned to genuine gratitude. Her right hand begins to play with the ends of her hair and she smiles at the drink. "Thank you," she says quietly.

"No problem," Meliodas says with a salute. He then focuses his attention back to his friend whom he had momentarily forgotten about. "Sorry, Ban. What was it that you asked, again?"

"Oh, you done flirting?" Ban sneers.

Meliodas stares, his smiling expression staying the same, but his jovial ambience goes completely void. It's almost as if his soul has been taken out of his body and he's left as an empty puppet. "I wasn't flirting," he says. "Go back to the kitchen if you don't have anything better to talk about. I don't have it in me to deal with that today, Ban." The green-eyed boy then turns away with a sigh, bending down to grab a rag and disinfectant spray bottle from one of the bottom shelves nearby. When he has nothing to do or just wants to stay busy at work, he'll sometimes wipe down the countertop. Even if it doesn't need it. He had wiped them down about five minutes before Ban arrived. That is a long enough wait, right? He hears his friend sighing heavily behind him, but he doesn't pay any mind to it and simply proceeds to spray the black countertop.

"Okay, Okay, I'm sorry, alright?" Ban apologizes, setting his smirk into a grimace. He then props his chin up on the palm of his left hand. "It's just, I never see you ever showing any signs that you're human."

"Human?" Meliodas questions, finally turning to look at the spiky-haired boy. "What do you mean?" he asks, clearly not understanding. He always thought he was fairly human…for the most part. If anything, it's Ban who's not human.

"Yeah, you know, the natural man's desires…" Ban simply states in a way that implies there's more. As if that answers anything.

Meliodas cocks his head to the side, looking out the one-way glass window wall that connects to the single front door. Not a soul is in sight outside. "I'm tired—have been, all day," he says, locking eyes with his scarlet-eyed friend while pointing to himself. "You do know, all I want to do is sleep right now, right? That's human, isn't it?"

"Yeah, well, everything eventually becomes _tired_," Ban says lamely, "so it's normal. With the way you've been carrying yourself, though, you could be a demon for all I know. It's not normal, you know? The way you go about with life."

"Huh, you really think so?" Meliodas wonders, looking up at the black ceiling which is covered in glow-in-the-dark stars of various small sizes; if only they could be stars that actually granted wishes. Other than human, he also always thought he was pretty normal…but he knows those are just lies he tells himself so he doesn't stress too much about it. He may come across gullible to some, but to be honest, anything to explain something about the way he is, he is open to. Even if it means classifying him as a demon.

"Yes, it's not normal," Ban confirms. "You always pick up people's shifts at work, even though you're crazy busy and often exhausted," he begins, starting to tick everything off on his long fingers, "you always workout for hours on end at the gym, you're a monster at wrestling—practically undefeatable—you're also a fulltime student at the University of LIones, a prestigious, top-ranked college, and not to mention you actually manage by with full marks for all of your classes!—and no offense, but your family background isn't exactly sunshine and daisies, either!"—Meliodas merely smirks at that bit—"You didn't grow up in paradise," Ban bluntly states to finalize his point. "So, tell me, how is it that you're able to handle all of—" he does some weird hand gestures, as if everything he had listed off is actually all laid out on the countertop in front of him and he is trying to fathom how to include them all—" _this?!_" He shakes his head. "It's not normal. You can't possibly be human. You don't even ever show that you have any of the natural man's _weaknesses_."

"Oh?" Meliodas muses. "And what might those be?" He certainly is no god, but he did consider himself to handle most things perceptively better than most people. Emphasis on _most things. _Not everything, however. He knows exactly where his weakness resides inside a hidden cave in his heart; and it's not a mere black bear living in this cave, but a fierce dragon whose slumber one should never wish to disturb, or else...say your prayers.

"Well," Ban starts, taking no time to list some off: "Greed, _lust_…? Do you even like girls?"

Meliodas rolls his eyes. "So, you mean to say, the seven deadly sins?" he says while dragging the slightly damp rag over to the spot he has just sprayed, getting slightly closer to his tall friend. The strong citrus odor from the spray burns his nose a little, making him slightly scrunch up his face.

"Yeah! Uh, what were all of them again?" Ban questions.

"Umm…wrath," Meliodas first states. "Gluttony…pride…" He looks over at Ban for assistance.

"Let's see, I already said greed and lust, so that puts us at…five…" Ban says, concentrating his eyes real hard on the countertop. He then looks around the room, as if the answers would be written somewhere, when his eyes eventually land on the boy on the other end of the bar, who now has his forehead resting on his forearms, hiding his face. He stares at the boy for a solid five seconds before finally saying: "Sloth."

"Oh, yeah! That's right. Now we just have one more…let's see…" Meliodas says, spraying another spot on the counter and slowly wiping it in circular motions. He kind of feels like he should know this a lot better, but to be honest, he never really thinks a whole lot about the other seven deadly sins, despite how incredibly familiar they seem now that they're talking about it. It almost feels as if they are talking about old friends. There is only one sin he's been known to associate with, and that one is the only one he ever really understood and acknowledges enough to remember well.

"Envy."

"Ah—" both Meliodas and Ban say simultaneously, looking over at the chestnut-haired girl whose majestic purple gaze is cast down on her almost empty glass. Her hands push the glass back and forth between her palms, sloshing the dark liquid around, creating bubbly waves like that of a raging dark ocean.

The girl then flicks her gaze over at them and cocks her head a little. "Right?" she says. "That's the last sin you guys haven't mentioned yet. Envy."

"Yeah, I think you're right," Meliodas slowly says, giving her his bright trademark smile. "Thanks for helping us out."

"Yeah, thanks," Ban agrees. "Knowing us, we might've been at it forever."

Hearing that last part, Meliodas can't help but glance at Ban with questioning eyes. It seems wrong. Would they really have taken that long to figure it out? Something tells him, _no_.

"No problem," the girl simply says while dropping her gaze back down to her drink, bringing the green-eyed boy's attention back to her.

The two boys stare at her a bit longer before going back to their conversation. But just before they can get a word in, they hear a loud gasp and the sound of glass clanking against the countertop. When their attention turns back towards the girl, she is now standing in a defensive pose, looking over at the older man beside her with horrified eyes. If they had known any better, they would've thought the older man beside her had tried to make an unwanted move on her; but with the way the older man stares back at her with concern painted in his dark eyes, still in the same spot he has been for the past hour and a half since Meliodas started his work shift, it contradicts the scene.

Quickly eyeing the now tipped over rolling glass with its spilled contents seeping across the once spotless black abyss, Meliodas dives to the ground with a curt "Oh!" escaping his lips. A moment passes and he stands up his racing heart now beginning to relax, he lets out the breath he has been holding for relief that he actually managed to pull off catching the glass before it shattered against the floor. "Man, that was close," he quietly mumbles, setting the glass upright on the countertop. He then turns to the scene of the girl and older man, asking: "So, what happened?"

The girl blinks, and once she seems to realize what she's done, her entire face flushes bright red. "Ohmygosh!—I-I-I'm so sorry!" she stutters with panic heavily lacing her voice. She frantically glances between Meliodas and the alarmed old man. She doesn't seem to know what to do, other than probably run away and find a nice isolated cave to reside in for the rest of all eternity. At least, that's what Meliodas is detecting.

"Are you okay?" the old man asks, to which the girl profusely nods her head to.

"No!—I mean—yes! I'm so sorry," the girl continues to apologize. "I am so, so, so, so, so, so sorry!" she says sincerely to the old man. "I didn't mean to startle you!—it's not your fault…"

"What about me? Now I have to clean up the mess you made," Meliodas abruptly says, his face blank and unreadable. He silently watches as the girl begins to panic even more and starts to profusely apologize to him, too, even offering to clean up the mess herself before he finally chuckles and shakes his head. He better stop this now before she has a mental breakdown. "It's fine," he says. "I was joking. No need to stress and apologize so much. It was just an accident, right?" He then grins at her.

For a moment, it seems as if the girl might cry, but when she exhales deeply, the crimson color painting her cheeks waters down a little, and her shoulders relax. "Thank goodness," she says in a whisper. "I'm so glad you're not actually mad…" She places her hand over her heart, laughing dryly at herself. "Heh, it's beating so hard… Who knew something like that would…" she starts to say, but the finishing words disappear from her mouth. A moment passes, and absolute horror quickly twists and molds her facial features into something one might only see on the face of a victim in a slasher film. "Oh. My. _Gosh! _How _embarrassing! _I can't believe I…" the girl tries to speak, but her shame swallows her whole, disabling her voice, and she does the only thing she can do to hide herself, which is conceal her face with her dark hair.

Evidently, something did actually die inside of her. And if Meliodas looks carefully, he is sure he can see the girl's dignity all cut up on the walnut hardwood floor…oh. Wait. Those scratch marks on the ground are just from people carelessly scooting the metal chairs back on the ground in their rage to leave; and then, that dark spot is just the shadow of the girl. But it ironically seems like a pretty good representation, so he decides to view it as what his original thoughts had perceived it to be.

"It's okay, accidents happen," Meliodas reassures her as he finds a rag and covers up the small black mirror made out of liquor on the countertop. He watches as the white rag quickly begins to soak up the deep maroon color, tainting the once pure rag with its evil toxins. "Just sit back down and tell me what happened. I'm a pretty good listener, you know," he says reassuringly, looking up. "And it's not going to help you if you run away and leave. Not that it seems like you can do that, though," he observes, noticing how her muscular legs had locked themselves in place. "Sit," he orders, bending down to grab the same alcohol bottles he had earlier. He is making another concoction of Demon's Wrath. This girl clearly needs it.

It takes a minute or so, but the girl manages to bravely peek out from behind her hair like a shy child, and after examining Meliodas' concentrated face, she seemingly decides he genuinely means no harm to her. So, she musters up all the strength left in her legs and hesitantly takes her seat.

"Ban," Meliodas calls, "can you maybe go make her some comfort food? Fries, maybe? Anything good will do. I'll make you a proper drink if you do."

At that last sentence, Ban smirks. "Sure thing, Captain," he complies and stands up with too much effort than necessary. "Hey, Girl," he calls out, catching the chestnut-haired girl's attention. He blinks at her, and then squints his scarlet eyes at her. Finally, he says: "What are you still hiding behind your hair for? Do you have a pimple?"

The girl sits in shock. And before she seems to know it, she's boiling over. Releasing her hair and allowing it to hang back down over her shoulders, she shoots him a harsh look. "You didn't have to be _that_ rude," she hisses.

"'Rude?'" Ban echoes with a large smirk. "Please. Says the girl who was hiding behind her hair the whole time Captain was speaking to her just barely. And not to mention, you were the one who created an unnecessary mess."

"_Excuse me?" _the girl fumes with much control on her volume.

In the background, participating as one of the few people in the audience by default, Meliodas simply watches the girl and Ban's interaction while he makes more servings of his special drink. The girl hates Ban already. He can tell that much. He glimpses over at the other two customers at the bar, and sure enough, their curious eyes are watching the show.

Ban then snickers in response to the girl, turning to walk away. "Relax, Drama Queen," he says nonchalantly, "can't you take a joke?" He stops and glances back at her fuming face. "Anyways, I finally got you to stop hiding behind your hair. What were you embarrassed for? It was just an accident, just as the Captain said," he says with a shrug. "Oh, are you okay with sweet potato fries? They're the only thing I have pre-cut and ready to make."

The girl opens her mouth, but no words come out. To say the least, she is in shock. When she makes eye contact with the tall, spiky-haired man, she clamps her mouth shut, becoming conscious of her manners. "Um, ye-yeah," she says with a curt nod of her head, "thank you."

Meliodas furrows his eyebrows as he pulls out two new glasses, still watching their interaction as if it's some sitcom soap opera. He quickly takes time to count the glasses and looks around at the bar, pulling out one more glass. He can tell the girl's feelings towards Ban are shifting to something less loathsome, but how long is that going to last?

Ban nods his head. "Coming right up, Drama Queen," he says while heading off to the employee kitchen entrance.

A tick apparently goes off inside of the girl because she's quick to inform with much venom dripping in her voice: "It's _Diane."_

Ban merely shrugs, not bothering to look back at her this time as he says: "Same thing."

The girl, Diane, is raging now. She looks around, almost as if she's looking for something to throw, but upon finding nothing and maybe thinking better of it, she does the only thing she is capable of doing, which is sticking her tongue out in the direction Ban has disappeared in.

"So, Diane," Meliodas says with a grin, capturing the girl's attention as he pushes her now full glass towards her and leans on his right elbow, resting his chin on the palm of his hand; he has already distributed two of the glasses to the other two customers at the bar, and plans to make Ban's for him when he's done with the fries. "Tell me. Minus the events that just barely happened, how has your day been?"

* * *

**I felt like this chapter was becoming too long, so I decided to look up how many words are averagely in a chapter for a novel, which is 3,000-5,000. Which then resulted in me cutting this chapter in half. So I'll probably have the next chapter out really soon.  
**

**Word length normally isn't something that bothers me, but even I have times where I have a hard time finishing to read a chapter in one sitting (no matter how much I like the story; my attention span is just short). And if possible, I'd like you guys to enjoy reading this as much as possible, but in a decent time frame. But...haha, I don't know how much it matters, if at all, to you guys, though...?**

**Thanks so so so much for reading! Honestly, if you've made it this far, I couldn't be any happier. :) And special thanks to that Guest reviewer who's been commenting.**


	5. In All Reality

**4\. In All Reality**

Diane tells him everything. From the moment she woke up to the moment that resulted in her making the biggest fool of herself just moments ago. And he listened. This green-eyed boy, whom she eventually learned that his name isn't actually, Captain, but, Meliodas, after a humiliating moment she tried to be bold, he listened intently to every word she had to say. And somehow, even though she isn't sure if it was fake or not, he seemed to actually _empathize_ with her. He understood how she has been feeling all day. Maybe it's because he's a bartender and he's used to hearing all these crazy stories. Maybe she's just making it up in her head because she's been misunderstood about this for so long. She isn't sure. But what she does know is that he heard her and knows how she feels, and that is more than most of the "close" people she has in her life.

Her horror story of quite possibly one of the _worst_ days in her entire life all started when she woke up this morning. Her heart was racing, she was terrified, and most of all, she was absolutely _exhausted_. But apparently her current state of stagnation was a bad thing. Instinctively, she had looked behind her, expecting to see something scary, but all she saw was the blank white wall to her dorm room. It was strange and absolutely ridiculous. Right after that, her attention was brought to her skin. It was itching all over—_it felt like something was crawling all over her body._ Without even seeing a bug or creepy-crawler of some sort, she was feeling paranoid about it. It didn't make sense to her since that kind of reaction only happens when she runs into the misfortune of actually having to _deal_ with those creepy, disgusting tiny little _things _that always invade her space when they are _clearly_ uninvited.

She hates bugs. She hates spiders. She hates everything that resembles those types of creatures or belongs in their family. She always has hated them, ever since she could remember—but that didn't mean she's afraid of them. That last fact also didn't mean she didn't feel the aftereffects after encountering a creepy-crawler, either; but she hadn't come across one the day before or one when she woke up, nor could she even remember what she had dreamed last night, so that paranoid feeling just didn't make sense. It eventually went away after eating breakfast, but that didn't mean her problem was all over and resolved for the day. _Clearly. _

If she had known how bad her paranoia for those stupid little creatures would be today, she would've stayed home. But she didn't realize because she's never had it _this _bad before.

The second she left her dorm room to complete the tasks she had planned out for the day was when the real nightmare started. If she by any chance actually had a really awful dream last night, well, it surely couldn't compare to today. After all, nothing is scarier than reality.

Everything she heard and felt that seemed to remind her of _something, _she isn't sure what, she had a heart-stopping reaction to it. When she was training earlier today for boxing, a loose fuzzy had brushed against her skin and she almost jumped right out of her skin. Anyone could call that a normal reaction, but not for her. It was a bit too dramatic, and even _she _knew that. The girls she was training with laughed and brushed it off easily, blaming her reaction and symptoms on her so-called "lack of sleep," even though she had a full eight hours' worth of sleep the previous night. But she had been complaining to them about how exhausted she felt, so she could understand their reasoning, but it didn't make sense with the facts. She did try to explain to them, but it simply went through one ear and out the other.

Later on, the same overdramatic reaction happened when one of her hairs had fallen out and caught on to her leg while she was walking to the library at her school to use a computer. She ended up dashing the rest of the distance to the library as if a madman was chasing her. All she wanted to do was research her condition at that point, if there was such a thing that had already been diagnosed in this world. But she didn't find what she was _really _looking for. All she found was something about formication, entomophobia, arachnophobia, and a bunch of other stuff she didn't care about because they _weren't her real dilemma._

When she went to the grocery store, her situation didn't get any easier. Even going out to eat for lunch turned out to be a huge mistake. Walking in the general public was a terrible choice. All the noises she heard—from the crackling of plastic to the rustling of leaves—she had an overdramatic reaction to all of it. Her poor heart wasn't getting a break. _But_…it wasn't as bad as it had been at the start of the day. She was getting better. Slowly. She was also catching on to the fact that beside anything that felt as if a bug or spider was touching her, there was a certain type of noise that was making her react. After mulling it over and over and over inside of her head like the never-ending cycle she watched as her clothes spun dry in the drying machine, she finally came down to the conclusion that any sound that resembles the sounds of leaves and branches breaking is her trigger.

How she managed to come to that precise conclusion? Because she loved the outdoors, and it's the only place she can escape this world and feel peace, but she was having an _excruciatingly_ difficult time earlier today when doing yoga in her usual spot. She could hardly keep her composure! And for as long as she can remember, yoga in nature has been the only thing she's had that could help comfort her and make her forget all of her problems. It almost seemed like betrayal on her part when the noises she had become one with were the very thing making her heart stop, and she certainly is no stranger to them.

By the time it was evening and she had completed the task of doing her laundry at the local laundromat, for the laundry machines they had in her dorm room are currently broken, Diane was so exhausted and done with the day. When she walked by the small bar-restaurant on her way back to her dorm, she originally wasn't going to go in. But the title of the restaurant, Fairy King's Ale, and the cute silhouette of a male fairy was what ultimately drew her in. She always did love romance and anything that had to do with fairytales. That's what originally brought her to the University of LIones. She knew that the school and general area was heavily influenced by everything magical—mostly things one would only find in a fairytale story. And compared to the bland place she grew up in…well…all she wanted was to escape it.

Plus, she felt that maybe she deserved to have a drink. It'd been such a long day for her, and she had a lot of different stresses on her mind.

Things were going so well at first. The bartender was odd, but kind, and the place wasn't crowded…yet. She figured it'd become crowded within an hour or so, and that's when she would leave. She had been enjoying the strange concoction the bartender had made just for her, tuning in to the bartender's intriguing conversation with whom she assumed was a coworker, judging by the outfit, when she accidentally blurted it out. She didn't mean to intrude on their conversation, but when it came to the topic of the seven deadly sins and they couldn't think of the last one they hadn't listed off yet, she just couldn't help it.

The sin of envy isn't something she is strangers with, after all, and the fact that they couldn't remember it…well, she had to do _something_. For, this sin, she identified it as her own, and she felt like she owed it the respect and acknowledgement it needed. Envy in a way represented her, and as weird as it may sound, she felt like she was being forgotten when they couldn't remember it. It honestly made her mad, but it didn't seem right for her to get mad at a couple of guys she barely even knew, so she had to keep her cool when she gave them the last piece to the puzzle they couldn't solve.

And then, that's when it happened. She was aware of her surroundings, but when the older man to her right stood up simply to readjust his chair and seating position, it triggered something in her. From the corner of her eye, he looked like something else. The man beside her (who is now long gone—_ugh, _she really hopes he knows how sorry she really is), leaving merely after he had finished the free drink Meliodas had given to him for the trouble she had caused him, he had reminded her of a tall, slim gray tree. Which is weird since it shouldn't have startled her that badly, but…something about it... The rush of fear she had was the exact same one she had when she woke up this morning.

When she got a clear look at the older man beside her after creating such an unforgivable scene, having knocked over her drink and jumped out of her seat, ready to fight this foe, she immediately knew she was in the wrong. He was not a moving tree, but a mere old man in a gray suit, trying to enjoy his drink from what seemed to be a tiring day. He was incredibly tall and slim, having a hollowed out face, and his dark gray hairs and lifeless skin gave her the feeling that he was a lonely person. But an incredibly kind one. And she probably ruined his day. It was most definitely _not _fine.

Diane hides her face behind her hair for the second time that day. She still feels so incredibly awful about it. She no longer feels embarrassed, but more ashamed. Talking to Meliodas really did help her, though. Ban, too, even though she really isn't sure how to feel about him now. When he called her a "Drama Queen" earlier, well…honestly, why she got so upset over it is because he isn't exactly in the wrong for calling her that. All day, she knows she has been one. But she didn't like the fact that he could call her out on it so _easily_ without even getting to know her first.

Diane finally releases her hair, allowing the brown curtains to reveal her face, and with a sigh she picks up a slim, perfectly sea-salted fry and takes a bite. Ban did make her some pretty delicious sweet potato fries, though; she could give him that much credit. As she chews, enjoying the savory flavor and sweet aroma from the meal, she looks around.

The boy who sat at the right corner end of the bar is still here, seemingly deep in thought about something. A couple of times, she had made eye contact with him, and to save them both from the awkwardness, she smiled, but he must've been the shy type for he always looked away, going red in the face. Unless it was the alcohol getting to him. Either that or she really scared him. She did have a more muscular build compared to most girls, after all.

On the left corner end of the bar is Ban and Meliodas. Once the two had listened to how her day had been and all the frustrations she had been dealing with alone, they gave her reassuring words, making her feel more sane, and eventually left her to her own privacy. Because of them—well, mainly Meliodas—she thinks she might actually make it a habit to come here more often, even though she normally doesn't drink that much. She'll come for the company and food, if anything. As much as it didn't seem like it, Ban is actually a lot better at cooking than she had assumed. And even though she finds Ban questionable, she actually likes both his and Meliodas' presence. Something about it almost feels like…home.

Diane heaves out a sigh. Her purple gaze mindlessly wanders back over to Meliodas, who is casually leaning against the countertop, resting his chin on the palm of his right hand as he converses with Ban. That charming smile of his is fixed on his young face. _How old is he? _She looks him up and down. For whatever reason, something tells her inner instincts Meliodas is a lot older than she is… As an athlete herself, she could tell he is a fairly fit person; he probably has some decent muscles...

Compared to her own height, the golden tousled-haired boy is of short stature, but for whatever reason, she can't help but feel a sense of security about him. He seems incredibly capable, and there's something else about him that she just can't wrap her finger around. Call her crazy, but she just feels that there's something familiar and comforting about him, and somehow, she knows she'll be taken care of if she stays around him. Normally, in the kind of situation where she embarrasses herself, she would leave. Insist on it, even, if she has to. Yet, for whatever reason, it wasn't something she actually wanted to do this time…

The boy to her right suddenly gets into a coughing fit, probably having choked on his drink, and it brings Diane out of her own little world inside her head. She blinks. Then she looks away and down at her clasped hands that rest atop the black smooth surface of the bar counter. She really needs to stop staring. She's being a creep. Looking around some more, deciding she needs to know the time, she finally gives up on finding a clock hanging somewhere and looks at the time on her phone. She sighs heavily. It's probably about time that she leaves, even though she kind of doesn't really want to... But, she still stands ever so slowly, moving with the bones of a hundred year-old lady, and bends down to pick up her sports bag full of her laundry. She can't help but amuse herself by wondering how many people could guess what really is inside of her bag.

"You never did answer my first question I had asked you earlier today," Diane hears Ban suddenly say. "I asked you about your sleep last night. So…how bad was it this time?"

Without realizing it, Diane is intently listening in to their conversation as if it's some important radio broadcast warning. For whatever reason, almost as if she expects to hear something alarming, her heart begins to pound a little faster as she slowly starts to turn and make her leave. What is she even expecting? Now she's just being unreasonable. There really couldn't be anything they could say that could…

"Oh, that," Meliodas says flatly. "Yeah…" He pauses, almost as if in debate on whether or not he wants to talk about it or not, but he reluctantly does anyways. "I had another one of those nights where I kept on waking up. I think I woke up almost every half hour, so maybe like, eleven times?"

"Man," Ban says, sighing loudly, "that bad?"

"Yeah."

A silences falls between the two, until Ban's voice finally breaks it.

"Do you ever think that our dreams are the reason for us waking up like that? I had a night like that a couple days ago, but not quite as bad as yours. I maybe woke up at least three times, though."

Silence.

Then Meliodas exhales loudly, but his voice when he speaks is low and soft.

"I think so… And as crazy as it sounds, I'm beginning to think there is actually a reason as to why we're not able to remember our dreams. It's like, there's something that …"

But before Meliodas can finish his thought, Diane slams her hand down on the counter and leans across it towards the two boys who lean slightly back with raised eyebrows, saying: "You guys can't remember your dreams either?!"

.

She opens her eyes, gazing up at the foggy world with eyes the color of the sky that she hasn't seen for a few days now. Lately, it's been cloudy or too foggy to see what's up. She blinks…and then gasps, sitting up straight and looking around. Her clothes are damp and the cool misty breeze dancing around her makes her shiver. The clear sound of crashing water is nearby, but it's too foggy for her to see just how close it actually is. All she can smell is the wet ground and misty air.

Elizabeth struggles to a stand, stumbling a little, but manages to keep her balance on her shaking legs. Her feet are bare, but not muddy like they once used to be. It's been so long since she had shoes, and with how dirty her feet once were, she isn't even sure how worth it to even have shoes is anymore because either way, with all the different environments she's been walking around in, the shoes would ultimately become dirty, ruined, and demolished. Her last pair, which had been about ready to rest in their grave, she had used a while ago to mislead a creature in a different direction—there was absolutely nothing else to throw, the shoes were already in her hands since she had taken them off to make her existence quieter, and she was in a similar foggy setting. But there weren't any trees or rocks or anything to take cover behind. Not a single sound of nature could be heard, either. She was just in a plain, open area, concealed by a thick gray fog. The only noise that could be heard was when the silence had to be broken by the echoes of her footsteps and heavy breathing. As well as whatever was chasing her.

That place had to be, by far, the most unsettling place she's ever come across. She's still not sure how she didn't realize the sudden change in land around her, either…and then the fog. It just came pouring in like a gray flood, and before she knew it, she wasn't sure where she was walking anymore. It was like being out in the middle of the ocean, surrounded by nothing, and not knowing what existed in the deep blue depths, but much worse than just that because in her case, it was like she was swimming blindly beneath the surface of the dark blue waters, unable to surface, and never knowing what she might run into.

Elizabeth spins in a few circles, trying her best to stay calm and spy anything she might recognize, but all she sees is the thick, gray wet fog. She knows she's not too incredibly far from the area she had woken up in this morning…but _where _exactly? She isn't in a cloud, is she? She looks down at the ground. It's just wet dirt, full of mini smooth pebbles mashed into its flat surface. She definitely isn't in a cloud. How did she even get here? Why is she wet? _What happened? _

She suddenly closes her eyes and grabs her head, slightly bending over. Her head feels dizzy and light, and all her thoughts are spinning. Oh, how she should not have spun in all those circles! She can't seem to make sense of anything now...

"Just breathe," she soothes to herself, trying her best to suppress the small nauseous feeling taking hold of her throat and mouth. "Breathe…"

Opening her eyes slowly, she stares down at her heavy wet dress that is sticking to her skin like a leech; the deep blue color of it appears black. The damp material makes her become conscious of her wet silver hair that is hanging heavily behind her back, but it's not dripping, and neither is her dress, so she calculates that it isn't quite just recently that she had gotten wet... _Gah—why even _is_ she wet again?_ She remembers running away from that spider-like creature, and how so many branches tried to slow her down, and then she heard that bloodcurdling screech—

Elizabeth gasps: "Diane!" She looks up with searching, worried eyes. That screech she heard—it was Diane screaming! She remembers looking behind her and before she could stop running…she was falling. That's right… She remembers it all now. She had fallen…and eventually landed in freezing cold water.

Elizabeth stands up straight, still feeling a little lightheaded, and looks in the direction the sound of crashing water is coming from. She had fallen into the base of a waterfall. How long of a fall was it? She can't remember anymore. It all happened so fast…yet, she had managed to survive. And somehow, she had gotten out of the waters... How? It wasn't Diane, she knows that much—oh, she hopes that her giant friend is okay, though—but someone… She closes her eyes, urging her brain to remember. _Who? _Unless she somehow washed up on land, but considering the place she had woken up at, there is no way it could have been the waters that brought her to safety. This world isn't that generous.

Opening her eyes, she self-consciously reaches a hand behind her to touch her back, feeling nothing but her wet silver hair hanging raggedly. Well, she now knows that there is also absolutely no possible way she could have done it miraculously herself. A frown tugs at the corners of her lips. How silly of her to think that her stolen wings could grow back… After all, it has been eleven years, and she knows that wings aren't something that can regenerate. It's just like losing an arm or other body part because that's just the kind of role wings were for her. Once they're gone, they're gone forever. It's been so long since then…

Too young to know any better, yet barely old enough to be able to remember everything. What a horrible combination of fate. Especially for the tragedy she could only identify as the ultimate _bane_ of her existence. At least, that's what everyone around her seems to think…or once did. She knows that _they_—those who dwell in the heavens—still think it, though. She likes to think and say otherwise, however…despite how much pain she still feels, no matter how much time has passed. She's beginning to believe the pain will never go away. She's grown used to it now, however, and it simply feels numb to the point to where she will forget about it when she's not thinking about it. But the space between her shoulder blades still hurts, and…_words_…words will never be able to describe it.

Elizabeth purses her lips together, shaking her head as if to shake out her current thoughts. Anyways, she needs to figure out what to do now. She shouldn't stay standing here; it's more dangerous for her to be out in the open like this. She needs to keep moving until she can find a secure place. She is lucky enough to still be standing here in one piece, and she shouldn't waste… Her cerulean blue eyes wander to her pale hands and her body, and soon, she starts spinning in a circle again, gazing all around at her surrounding_. She shouldn't waste what someone else must have done to save her_.

There is no other explanation for how she is on land, and not freezing to death in the waters. _Someone _had to have saved her. Or at least _something. _And like she has already cancelled out earlier as a possibility, there is no possible way it is something from this world. It has to be someone _not_ from this world—someone like _them_—Meliodas and the others…

But where is her rescuer? If it is someone she knows, then surely they would still be here; they wouldn't have left her side. Even if it isn't someone she knows, most people would still stay…right?

_Snap!_

She turns towards the noise, suddenly seeing a black figure disappearing in a swirl of fog. Wait…is that what she really saw? Her jaw slackens, but she quickly blinks out of her trance and follows after the figure. "Wait!" she calls out, following after the figure, and before she knows it, she's stumbling into some greenery. She can now see a little more than just the gray fog. There are now a few tree trunks and some bushes she can make out, and the texture of the ground is changing into something a little drier, yet pricklier.

After stumbling a little further in the same direction she had seen the mysterious figure fade away into, now surrounded by towering, dark gray trees with the crashing sound of water more distant, Elizabeth does another circle.

"He-Hello..?" she timidly calls out. She turns her head, flickering her eyes here and there, turning her head once again, taking a step to look behind her, and stands still. The only remaining sound, other than the crashing sound of water and the steady beat of her heart, is silence.

She's all alone.

Elizabeth opens her mouth to call out again, but stops herself. What's the use? This person (at least, that's what she assumes that unknown figure she had seen is), they clearly do not want to be seen or found. If she knows any better, then she'll respect their wishes, rather than running into something other than what she is originally looking for. Something _much_ _worse_. Her luck has an awful tendency to run in that direction, just like an oblivious child. She sighs quietly, clenching her hands into fists. A chill then slides down her spine, reminding her how cold she really is. Looking around once more with her hands gripping her upper arms, she then decides to head back towards the waterfall.

She'll try to find a place to shelter nearby, as well as something to help keep her warm. It's probably best for her to stay near something loud, so that nothing else can hear her and has a less chance of finding her while she tries to recover her strength. After a few days, she'll make plans to travel someplace else because no matter what kind of "safe haven" she thinks she may find, something always, _always _finds their way to her. That's just how this world works. One can never be at peace or rest. It's not Heaven, after all. Plus, she absolutely hates this fog; it's easier to be fooled in this kind of setting, so it's better if she leaves as soon as possible…

"Ah—!"

Elizabeth abruptly trips over a protruding tree root and falls to her hands and knees. She stares down at the ground, dumbfounded by what has just happened and the surging pain blooming from her knees and the slight tingling pain burning at the palms of her hands. Instead of landing on the soft and prickly dirt, she has landed on the hard surface of the many pebbles pressed into the ground. And despite the cold, smooth surface of the pebbles, her aching hands and knees feel as though they are pressed against fire. She grits her teeth, trying to fight off the pain, and closes her eyes tightly. Her body…now that she's focusing her attention on it, it really is absolutely exhausted.

Before she knows it, the urge to sleep quickly shadows over her entire body, feeling much like someone has just thrown a heavy blanket over her, making the temptation for relaxation even more desirable. She could take a nap right here... _No, Elizabeth, _she firmly tells herself, and forces her eyes open. She needs to take care of herself first, mark X, and make sure she is in a secure place before she even thinks about rest.

Biting her bottom lip, she breathes through the pain and fatigue as she starts digging out some stones in the ground with shaky arms. She's doing what she always does whenever she travels and isn't being chased by something malevolent. She's creating an X—an enormous one.

* * *

**Hm. Definitely did not update this as soon as I thought I would...but... Thanks so much for reading! :)**


	6. Somnia

**5\. Somnia**

Come Monday morning, Meliodas finds himself gazing up at the fragile sky of the glass kingdom. The true colors of the glass aren't visible yet. It's six o'clock in the morning, and he's laying back on one of the blue sofas, taking up the entire space. He's all alone in the room. When he has a lot on his mind, he'll often come to this exact spot early in the morning, perfectly centered in the entire room, and look up, waiting. Something about seeing the glorious, fairytale kingdom from up above come to life by the sun's rays always gives him a feeling of comfort. And the glass sky…

He isn't normally one to personally establish relationships with inanimate objects, but if ever asked, he would say he has a special connection to the glass kingdom's cerulean blue sky. Just seeing the sun, moon, and stars come to life as the sun rises outside, bringing out a new color of sky that even _he _would call beautiful, always gives him a sense of nostalgia. It makes him think of the good old days, and a time that he loves…except, he has no memories that he can actually visualize and make connections to inside of his head. It's all just feelings he has that envelope his insides and make them ache longingly for that time period. A time period he isn't even sure of exactly.

Meliodas sighs, running a hand over his face. This world really is small… After the events that took place a couple of days ago, meeting that tall, brown-haired girl, Diane, what used to be a minor issue to him has suddenly expanded, and it didn't help that the more and more he's thought about it since then, this issue keeps on growing even bigger. It's like a spark, catching fire to a few leaves, and then making its way rapidly to a bush, and then the tree beside it, and then another tree…until suddenly, what once used to be a peaceful, lush green forest is now engulfed in dangerous red flames and black smoke. And now, he has to find a way to put out the flames. It's not an easy task.

He hasn't been able to think about anything else other than this: the fact that he can't dream—or more correctly, he can't _remember _his dreams. And neither can Ban. And now, the brand new addition, Diane, can't dream either. This problem about remembering his dreams…he no longer is the only one like he once used to always believe. When he met Ban and found out, sure, it was a shock, but he kind of figured they were just two peculiar odds out of all the evens. Nothing more, nothing less. Their problem about their dreams was just the same as someone being born without their sight or hearing. Since Ban didn't delve too much into this issue when they found out they dealt with the same issue, he didn't bother either. If anything, Ban actually helped reassure him that his problem was normal. He became someone to confide in—or rather, _Meliodas_ became someone for _Ban _to confide in_, _for he always has tried to not pay too much attention to this peculiar issue. After meeting Diane, it should've helped reassure him even more that it is normal, right?

Oh, _heck no_—all it did was reignite his curiosity. All his questions, all his doubts, all his theories he once had—they came back from the dead in that same moment Diane came over and told him and Ban that she suffers the same situation. Furthermore, she's experienced something similar to what he had felt the other day when he cried, making it absolutely impossible for him to go back to the days he would just ignore his emotions from another seemingly dreamless night. Plus, he was getting a bit tired from trying to avoid it all.

Now, there's no doubt on what he has to and _will _do. Or else it'll bother and distress him to no end until he finally dies from the pressure of the stress of not understanding and knowing. He'd rather not die young. He's going to figure out why he can't remember his dreams. Why any of them—Ban, Diane, and himself—can't remember their dreams. Even if the reason is something as simple as a mere flaw in the brain, which he is positive that isn't the case, he'll find the answer. He's already come up with a few possibilities, and while a lot of them are more than outlandish for this time and age, he considers them very seriously. After all, he needs to be able to think outside of the box, or else he'll never be able to find the solution. This problem about not being able to remember their dreams isn't normal anyhow.

The only real dilemma that stands in Meliodas' way like an undefeatable opponent is being able to actually _prove _as to why they can't remember their dreams. He can say that the reason they can't remember their dreams is because something unworldly is making them forget; in reality, they are dreaming something important, but there's something that they're not supposed to know. Or maybe, their dreams are something that someone—some ethereal figure—doesn't want them to be able to remember… But in the end, it doesn't matter how many solutions he comes up with, does it? Because if he can't prove them, then what's the point? Or does he need to actually prove them…? What if the answer isn't something he can factually prove? Because if it _is _something unworldly, as he's beginning to strongly believe…

"_Argh!" _Meliodas groans, throwing his body to the side so that he can face the back of the couch. His eyes are tired and heavy with bags. He hasn't been able to sleep these past two days because his restless thoughts haven't been letting him. Which is why he finally decided it was time he came here to destress. He runs both of his hands through his blonde hair, shaking it up, making the long blonde strands an even more tangled mess than they were before. He is going to figure this out, whether or not whoever or _whatever_ doesn't want him to know continues to make it impossible because it's _not. _It's not impossible…he will figure it out…he will _remember. _He knows that whatever he can't remember during his sleep is something important…it _has _to be. Or else why make it so that neither he or Ban or Diane can't recall their dreams? Why? _Whywhywhywhywhywhy—_

He suddenly blinks, flicking his vibrant green eyes up towards the sky, vaguely noticing how the room is becoming brighter and lighter. _Ah…it's starting. _He turns his body so he's lying back on his back, and he watches unblinkingly. The intricate glass, outlined with a brassy gold is gradually beginning to glow, chasing all the shadows in the room away. Some parts of the glass kingdom, such as some of the scales on the dragon, the burst of power coming out of the wizard's hand, the stars and sun, the weapons and shields wielded by the knights, and many other small details, glitter more than the other sheen glass pieces. It's all incredibly enchanting, and it makes the kingdom above seem even more magical… Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet, and so much more…all the colors in the world are here. And before he knows it, the glass kingdom is back to life in full illuminous color.

What would it be like to live in such a bright world? So full of color…so full of _magic. _Meliodas purses his lips and reaches up towards the fragile sky, engulfing it with the palm of his hand so that he can't see a bit of it, and as if he can capture it all, he closes his hand into a tight fist. He then lets his hand fall limply by his side. _Magic…_huh… He could use a bit of that right now…

Without any control and the natural ease seeing the magical, glass kingdom coming to life brings him, just like a sleeping drug taking effect in his bloodstreams, his eyelids slowly begin to close. With the last thing he sees being the cerulean blue sky, Meliodas falls into a sound slumber.

.

He's at a bar. One full of shadowed figures and hideous monsters. He's the only one that looks human. Despite how different they all look, they all share one thing in common: They are all demons.

He picks up the wooden cup and brings it to his lips, inhaling the intoxicatingly sweet smell of berries from the burgundy liquid, but he doesn't drink. With vibrant green orbs, he studies the wicked beasts surrounding him, but none of them seem capable of handling a proper, civilized conversation. _Dang. _If he had his powers, claiming authority to get answers would be so much easier… He only hopes that his real-world self will quickly figure it out already and remember _her. _He closes his eyes, seeing silver starlight hair blowing in the wind, a gentle smile, and cerulean blue eyes—

He abruptly turns and throws his wooden mug across the room at a cackling Red Demon. It was annoying him—hearing its low laughter rumble throughout the room as it tore apart the smaller demons, which resembled a gray, spindly, tiny devil with bat-like wings, that scampered about at its feet with high shrills. The room seems to fall silent for a solid five seconds as the deep crimson liquid trickles down the Red Demon's ugly face like dark blood, but a loud shriek blares out of its mouth, shattering the silence, and it starts to thrash about, creating a fight amongst all the other demons. Meliodas simply gets up out of his spot unfazed and nonchalantly strides through the ruckus, easily avoiding damage. It's all white noise to him.

By the time he makes it outside, he finds that the streets of the trashed village, full of crumbling brick-like buildings, are empty. The air is musty and warm, and the light breeze that softly pulls at his blonde hair carries dust and death with it. The sky with no sun is shading over the world with blended deep hues of orange and blue. It appears as if it's evening time, even though he knows that it's still considered early afternoon. Off in the distance, malicious cries and screeches can be heard in an orchestrate echo. There's a bloodcurdling scream that suddenly rings out, giving him a similar feeling to that of hearing a wolf howl at the moon in the Human Realm. These kinds of noises are so normal to him, just like the air he breathes, it hardly affects him. He sighs and chooses to turn right to start walking down the dark street.

So, this is how life here is like in Somnia, the Roaming World of Dreams…or more accurately, the Treacherous World of Nightmares. He's always wondered what it's like here, but now that he's had the opportunity to see this world in its greatest glory, having woken up in various parts of it, he understands why this place is exiled and physically disconnected from the Demon Realm. There's no order here. Even if his status and power are regained, the demons here wouldn't care a bit. They'd still attack him blindly even if it would bring them death because they have no sense or value in life. _Kill _is all they can think about, as well as _death. _Well, that goes for about any demon, except the ones residing in the Demon Realm know who is in power.

Throughout his late years in the Demon Realm, Meliodas has managed to hear a few things about this place, Somnia. Every demon knows that it exists—they just aren't too incredibly educated about it to the point that it now comes across as more of a myth than someplace real. But he's always known of the truth in its existence. It's typically known more among the higher demons that no being that gets sent here lives long enough to ever come back and tell the tale. Another fact that is well-known is that this place received its name for the way people and creatures may arrive here. Dreaming is the only way possible. In myths and urban legends among the Human Realm, this place has the lesser title of: The Roaming World of Dreams. People are told glorious things about this place, but in reality, those who seek this place out and succeed in finding it eventually never return, and at best, die. _If they are given that mercy._ That's the trap those humans will never realize.

Somnia isn't some glory world people are told it is—some _heaven—_it's just another realm of Hell. It's a prison, to be exact. It's a separate layer not meant for the dead, but for the living. There's a particular black berry that one must ingest in order to gain access here; however, once consumed, there's no way to reverse its effect. Every time you dream, you are sent to Somnia, and the more times visited here, there more horrific it becomes, until soon, all you want to do is die so that you may return to the real world...but then one day, when you try to die, you don't wake up in the real world. You won't ever wake up in the real world. And no matter how many "deaths" you go through, you never actually die. The only way for you to die is if your real body dies, which is stuck in a coma in the real world. The reason why nobody ever knows the real truth about Somnia is because those who wake up after visiting it can never remember what they have dreamed, and that is how the dark secret of this world is kept hidden.

For whatever reason, due to the effects of the curse of having to live in a world where no magic exists, things are a bit different for Meliodas and the others. Based off of how things are in the current real world, only those who once had magic come here when they dream. At least, that's how it seems to be. As far as it goes for him and those being able to come to Somnia, as long as they don't partake of anything here, they should be waking up in the real world, even when they do break the curse and go back to the way things once were; he's made sure to relay to everyone and to have them pass it on that they are not to eat or drink anything here because most everything made here has the black berry incorporated into it.

But temptation and trickery is one thing that the demons here are exceptionally good at. If anyone consumes the black berry, Meliodas just knows for sure that they won't be able to return to the real world, and he's not sure if there's anything he can do to help them. As far as he knows, this world has no known exit…and that part is what's been concerning him the most.

_How is Elizabeth supposed to return to their world once they break the curse?_ Meliodas sets his jaw and clenches his hands into fists. He wonders where she is right now… Hopefully asleep and someplace safe. It's around that time, and because he knows he's not here on normal time, and that he's nowhere near her, he isn't going to try and find her, despite the fact that every ounce of desire inside of him wants to. He probably only has a couple hours here at best, and because he actually woke up near a village, he figures he should try to take this time to find a solution for her sake.

Meliodas has only told Elizabeth so much about this world. He is only willing to tell her the minimum. He doesn't want her to know the circumstances—not until he finds a way for her to escape. Because if she loses hope, then so will her light. Once her light goes out, then it'll be the end of her. And if she is to disappear…then he'll lose himself.

He doesn't even care about the part where all their magic will cease to exist if she dies—all he cares about is her safety. After all, it is his duty to keep her safe. That's what Bartra, her father, had hired him for. But at this point, he's not even protecting her because it's his duty… He's really done it in for himself this time.

_But there has to be a way for her to escape._

What Meliodas knows is that Elizabeth is imprisoned in Somnia because it's the only place left for her to exist. However, once they break the curse and all magic returns, she won't be able to return to their world because she is here in the flesh and bones. Her body isn't here in terms of being in a dream. Somnia is a prison. Therefore, it won't let her simply teleport out of here, and not even Merlin's sorcery can help the situation. But because this is a prison…there _has _to be a way out…for, he knows better than anyone that no matter how sealed and locked any form of imprisonment may be, there's always a way out…but it's nothing magic can do to help.

If he can remember it properly, there's an ancient text in the Demon Realm about Somnia. It's a poem he used to read all the time because it was there, written along the walls he once used to walk down every day as he got ready to prepare for war. How long ago has it been since then, though? He hardly paid attention to it, only mindlessly reading it…but it seems like it mentions about a way to escape this Hell…

"Ah…how did it go?" Meliodas mumbles, wary of his surrounding and the many eerie eyes that follow him, currently hidden in the shadows. He focuses his glowing green eyes on the dusty path ahead of him. "Something about the place—ah, that's right… 'A place far away…to…take you away…'" he begins, slowing down in his gait. Then it comes rushing back to him like a tidal wave.

"_A place far away, to take you away  
__A land of dreams, which swallow your screams  
__What is desired, may transpire  
__But only in darkness, can you progress  
__You think it is fun, but realize there is no sun_

_Beauty is death, never the rest  
__It is a treacherous curse, so ride in the hearse  
__Try to return, but it is about time you learned  
__For, the glory world is no longer more  
__And your never-ending Hell awaits…"_

The shrills and screeches off in the distant seem to become louder and his face contorts. _There's more…there _has _to be more… _That's not the end of the script, is it? He can't quite focus or concentrate. He grinds his teeth. There's too much noise going on in the background…_they're being a bit too noisy_. He looks around with narrow eyes, keeping his face forward and his pace steady. _Remember…_ he pleads to his memory. _There is more to the script..._ The stone wall—there was more written on it. But that part…it was eroding away…but he could still make out some words…

"What did it say?" Meliodas mumbles lowly. "Sin…something about sin…and being bound for ruin… And then repentance…something about the heart…_depart…_" He abruptly halts in his step. Someone is following him.

In one swift movement, he swings a blind punch at the air behind him. _Nothing. _There's no one there...nothing. Meliodas purses his lips and furrows his eyebrows. That's strange…he could've sworn—_shoot!—_

He quickly evades to the side and jumps, dodging a massive black, medieval double-sided axe as it swings down in the spot he once stood and then quickly glides over to the side where his torso would've been had he not jumped. His black boots land momentarily on the center between the two thick silver blades with ancient etchings on it, and he kicks himself backwards, flipping his body over and landing on the ground a good few feet away soundlessly.

When he looks up at his attacker, Meliodas freezes and his hardened face loses all emotion. "Ah…you…" he begins, but stops when he notices something odd. It's become deathly silent. All the other lower demon's cries—they've stopped. That's not good. "Guess we'll talk later, huh?" he snickers darkly, getting into position as the tall, rusty figure before him, in old metal armor, with black smoke flickering out between the cracks and openings like fire, holds their large weapon into position and adjusts their stance with their back facing Meliodas'.

As the two hold their positions in silence, Meliodas' green eyes flick upwards. He may not have any magic, but that didn't mean his physical strength and fighting skills were gone, too. A high shriek suddenly sounds off, and a grim smirk curls his lips when he spots the movement. _He's ready._

* * *

**This is AU, in case anyone hasn't picked up on it...and I will be explaining everything...eventually. I know this story is probably so weird. Oh well.  
**

**Thanks so so much for reading! :)  
**


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